Protesters in Rivers State have denounced the government in the State, saying there is no government in place and that there is no connection whatsoever between the people of the State and a Sole Administrator.
This is as officers of the Rivers State Police Command on Monday morning fired teargas at them while gathered at the Isaac Boro Park in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.
The protesters who converged under the aegis of the ‘Take It Back Movement’ were intimidated by heavy police presence when they gathered at the protest venue as early as 9am.
“Nobody can tell us where not to gather, we are Rivers people,” the young demonstrators state while confronting policemen who warned them not to hold the protest.
They however gave the protesters a hot chase and assaulted physically some of them including journalists reporting the event.
The protesters had earlier told the policemen that they had written to officially inform the police command of their intention to stage the demonstration in a letter dated April 3, 2025.
One of the protesters had told reporters that the “peaceful protest” was to express their grievances to the government. “We are not here for violence,” he had said.
The demonstrator listed some of their grievances to include the immediate repeal of the Cybercrime Act and the suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara.
“As it is, we have no government. This government in Rivers State is alien to our people; it is unconstitutional. We are here to demand that our governor comes back to office and lead us appropriately. We have a social contract with the governor and not the sole administrator. This is democracy,” he said.
Similar protests have begun in Lagos, Oyo and other states of the Federation with demonstrators demanding good governance.
